Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-11-25


"My poor Montressor," said Lonsdale,
laughing st the visions in which his
friend INDUCED, "these Burmese fellows
in gilt paper helmets have certainly moi
the mettIe OF the Mahdi's warriors; but
their bullets may be quite as perilous as
If fired by actual heroes"
sis it not strange, Travers," lisped
Danvers, as these two made their way &c
J the parade through the streets of bunga
| lows "strange to think that there should
have been such q list OF wounded-badly
: hit felloWs-st ChCwr;ngher; and that the
seductive little widow should be his wife
after ALP"
ers, as they passed Montressor, who was
J all unconscious that he was the cause o1
either envy or speculation.
"We shall have seen some sharp work
/ hope before tomorrow night" said be
to Lonsdale, IS they threw aside their CT
CARS and joined the parade in the dark;
tomorrow and tomorrow creep in oul
petty space from day to day"
"True. And who can tell what it may
bring forth for some OF us?" interrupted
Lonsdale, whose recent dream haunted
him uncomfortably.
| CHAPTER XXXVH.-TRE sTORMING OF
MINHLA.
The waning moon of the cool early
morning was tipping with its pale silvery
light the wonderful arebesque carvings OF
the great Shoe Dagon Pagoda that tower
ed above the soft simmering mist exhaled
from marsh and steam, and from the
damp clumps of heavy mangroves that
dropped into both, when Lonsdale and
Montressor left their quarters in the can
tonments at Rsngoon TO join the river
expedition against Minhla.
The thoughts of the former was still
full Of his strange and unpleasant dream
of Melanie Talbot, and of that time in
London when, amid the crush of q prosaic
West End ballroom, there had come
into the hearts of both the one great
dawn OF passion that can never
return again, when each was drawn to the
other by an irresistible power, though
the word Glove" had been unuttered :;
and when Melanie felt herself face to face
with her own heart, and knew, like Ions
dale, that she had met her fate; and then
came the memory of their parting hour.
In the morning wind the golden leaves
attached to the cornices of the vast
pRgOda were moving, and there, too,
were tossing and ringing the sweetly-
toned bells that hang among the rich
golden work of those wonderful leaves,
strange features Of face, built in an age
unknown, and which, when viewed by
moonlight, seems the abode of magic and
mystery, surrounded by winged monsters
with solemn countenances, tranquil mieD,
and painting lips.
Thoughts of more practical nature
came On Lonsdale when the dawn broke
quickly on the river and it's wooded
banks, and he reflected that
happen what might, as the
FlOtilla steamed up the muddy Ira
waddy, the people at home, so many
Thousand miles eWay, would know ell
about it-who were the wounded and
who were the slhin-ere, perhaps, twelve
hours were over.
It was the morning Of the 18th Novem-
Der when the vessels with the Liverpool
regiment-as the old Eighth or Kings, is
now grotesquely named,-the Twenty
first and Twenty-1ifth Madras Native In
fantry, both in scarlet, the former faced
with buff, the latter with dark green,
some sappers, and Royal Artillery mule
battery, were landed at the village OF
Patnago, five miles below fort, which
was to be carried by assault;
but the trouble of doing so
was obViated By the garrison
"levantiGg," as soon as our troops came
in sight. after undergoing some brilliant
Smelling, however.
a point was thus turned and won with
ease, and other troops came Onto wit
the Second and Eleventh Bengal Infantry,
under Colonies Baker and Norris, and the
Twelfth Madras; and then the march be-
gan inland, in the direction of MinhIa,
nesr which was the most formidable de-
fence and barrier Of the river, the Kuligon
Fort, mile below the town.
Being ordered to ride forward and
recounoitre, Lonsdale, after some scouts
had been fired on and driven in, saw that
it stood on an isolated hill, about 800 feet
high, on bend of the river, and that it's
guns commanded a long and straight |
reach Of the latter.
The slope, which was defended by three |
ines Of earthworks faced with brick, was |
gentle, but there were other defences, |
formed Of huge teak logs, backed up by |
Earth and brick rsmparts, so solid as to |
1efy our artillery, and, as he reported to
he general, any attempt to carry them
~ assault would occasion much loss of
life.
More than two thousand men were sup
posed to be crowded into these works st
Iudigon, and by mis- field glass, Lopsdale
ould see item in their ranks-if ranks
hey could be called, as the Burmese are
like without ril or cipline-chewiDg
fetal, smoking and gesticulating wildly,
With their red pennons and gilt umbrel-
as; all with pspier-meche helmets
about on their topknots in a
omically embarrassing manner; and all
lad in gorgeous garments, bright red
unics, blue trousers, and variegated
sciDgs, while the booming of gongs, the
lash of cymbals, and the blare Of dole
ul trumpets, all meant to inspire cour-
ge, made up hideous volume of I
ound.
On the Madras and Bengal columns
Orming junction q village was ap-
reached, about mile and 8 half from
finhla, which had q population of about
600, and there the advanced files of the {
'welfth Madras Native Infantry opened {
re upon some scattered horsemen. s
Proceeding little further through q s
lngly snd densely wooded dis riot, these {
les were suddenly greeted by heavy Y
oiley, the smoke of which, with the hiss i
lg bullets, poured through the foliage in
ont and filed the place with obscurity. q
At this crisis, owing to the density of t
lie jungle, the ragged pslengra leaves e
nd cactus hedges, our advancing force 8
SIS in long column, as if proceeding i
trough narrow lane, the fanking
arties being quite invisible.